His Best Friend and Her Groom
by do i need a pen name
Summary: Companion to both 'His Best Man' and 'His Bride'. James is about to get married to the girl who always hated him. Find out how he felt about that, and what he did to change it, so that he could be standing here today, about to marry Lily. COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

**a/n-this is basically a continuation of His Best Man and His Bride. I've been meaning to post this for a while, so I've decided to relieve some of the stress from finals week by posting this. Like the other two stories, there will most likely be five chapters in this one, too. I hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer-I don't own anything Harry Potter related blah blah blah...**

**His Best Friend and Her Groom**

**Chapter One**

Lily Evans and Sirius Black are my two favorite people in life. Lily because, well…she's Lily. And as for Sirius…actually, I'm not quite sure why I'm even friends with him. To tell you the truth, he can be a tad annoying most of the time.

Anyway, I've known Lily since Hogwarts, and Sirius even longer. I really don't know what my life would be like if I had never met either of them.

Flashback

"So, remind me again why he thinks his great 'plan' is going to work this time." Remus said wearily as he and Sirius followed James back to the common room after dinner. "It hasn't worked for the past two months, why does he think it's going to work now?"

Sirius shrugged. "He just does."

Remus just shook his head sadly as James gave the fat lady the password. Once it was open, James quickly clambered through the portrait hole with Remus and Sirius not far behind.

"Ah-ha!" James said as he scanned the common room.

"This isn't going to end well." Remus muttered from behind him.

"What isn't?" Sirius asked.

"That." Remus said, nodding at their friend, who was now approaching none other than Lily Evans, who was peacefully sitting on the couch reading a book. That wasn't going to last very long.

"Hello, my dear Lilyflower." James said, stopping in front of her.

The peaceful expression was gone from her face when she looked up at him.

"What do you want, Potter?" She snapped.

Her unfriendly demeanor did not deter James, however.

"How would you like to go out with me some time?" He asked, combing his hand through his already messy hair.

"How about no." Lily replied shutting her book, standing up, and walking away to the girl's dormitories.

James just stared at the place Lily had been sitting in, an expression of pure disbelief on his face.

"She…She said no."

"I didn't realize you were serious in your belief that she would actually say yes this time." Remus said, coming up behind him.

Sirius laughed.

"It's not funny." James insisted, now acting a bit grumpy.

"Oh, get over it. She's just one girl." Sirius responded. "Besides, there's always tomorrow."

End Flashback

The first six years of my life at Hogwarts was full of many, many tomorrows. In that time, I asked Lily Evans out again and again. And again and again her response was always no. And eventually, a few well-chosen curses and jinxes were thrown in, just to mix things up a bit.

But eventually, my tomorrow came. One day, I asked Lily out and she didn't say no. In fact, she said yes. And kept saying yes. Again and again.

That's how I got here today…you know, at my wedding, because Lily decided to say yes to another one of my questions.


	2. Chapter 2

a/n-PLEASE READ THIS! if you haven't just come from reading the first chapter, i would strongly suggest you go back and do so right now. as of february 19 chapter one has been changed. When i began writing this chapter i realized that what i had written and posted for chapter 1 totally contradicted everything i said in the other two stories. so anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter. I'll try to update as soon as possible.

Chapter Two

The first time I met Sirius, we pulled a prank on his cousins. And we didn't get in trouble for it. Ah, those were the days… When we first met, we were both at this Ministry function-thingy. Those were not the days. One of the reasons both of us were so glad to go to Hogwarts was because we wouldn't be able to go to all of those things anymore.

Getting on the train for Hogwarts for the first time was one of the most exciting things Sirius and I ever did. We were finally going to the place we had only ever heard about in stories.

Once we got on the train, though, the only compartment we could find with room for us already had one other occupant. A red-haired girl was sitting in the corner, staring determinedly out of the window, and she ignored us when we asked if we could sit there. So Sirius and I sat down and started talking, totally ignoring the girl who was ignoring us.

That was the first time I ever laid eyes on Lily…my wonderful, amazing, Lilyflower. It's a shame she obviously didn't share my feelings back then.

You see, a bit after we came into the compartment, we were joined by a greasy-haired boy who wanted to talk to Lily. As he was here to see her, and not us, we ignored him, too…Until he said he hoped Lily would be in Slytherin.

Sirius coming from the family he did, and I remembering things I had heard from my dad about his days at Hogwarts, couldn't help but be interested in the two of them now. Of course, the conversation that followed wasn't one of the best, now that I look back on it, although it certainly had it's merits, what with it being the first time I talked to Lily and all that.

Of course, that _was_ when Lily and I got in our first fight.

And that was when Sirius and I proclaimed an all-out war against Snape.

And that was also when I made up my mind that I was going to love Lily Evans forever.

Of course that was another thing Lily didn't share with me when we first met.

Lily Evans might have been the girl for me, but I certainly wasn't the guy for her. Or at least, that was what she seemed to think. But she came around eventually. Not for a few years, but still…

When I asked Lily to marry me, she was so happy, I think she was a bit delirious. She kept saying the strangest things, and I think she even thanked Voldemort for starting the war at one point. And when I asked Sirius to be my Best Man, he kept going on about how we never would have come this far without that first meeting on the train, never mind how badly it went. I don't think I'll ever understand why I like those two.

As for me, all I'm going to say is, no matter how crazy Lily and Sirius can be I never would have made it as far as I have without them. Here, today, in this church with Sirius beside me…about to be married to Lily.


	3. Chapter 3

**a/n-i'm so sorry this has taken so long to get up. to tell you the truth, i almost forgot about this story. but no worries, i'm not abandoning it or anything. i should be able to write the next chapter soon, and i hope to get it up within the next week.**

**Chapter Three**

After our first meeting on the train, things got both worse and better. Although, some people might find the matter of who things got worse and/or better for quite debatable.

You see, things got worse for me because no matter how many times I asked Lily out, no matter how many different ways I asked her out, no matter when it was or where we were when I asked her out, Lily always said no.

Of course, the upside to all of that was that Lily had quite a few things to say to me whenever I asked her out, so the two of us talked a lot, kind of… Does saying she'd rather go out with the giant squid than me actually constitute a conversation? Hmm…probably not.

Things were worse for Lily because, as I realized years later, she really didn't want to go out with me. I'm not entirely sure why, though, I mean, seriously, why wouldn't anyone want to go out with me? I am perfect. Just kidding, just kidding. I've already learned my lesson, I promise, I know I'm not perfect. That was one of the few things Lily was able to successfully communicate to me after our first six years at Hogwarts.

And, you know, in the end, things were good for Lily because, even though she had sworn to hate me forever, the time finally came when she said 'yes' when I asked her out. Ahh, best day of my life…

As for Sirius, things only got better for him. He got free entertainment for six years. I swear, sometimes that guy is so easy to amuse; it's not even funny. Like that time he corrected Remus about how many times I'd asked Lily out and she'd said no. Even now I still can't believe he kept track of that, _and_ that I had to ask Lily out so many times before she actually said yes.

Of course, entertainment wasn't the only thing Sirius was around for. Whenever Lily and I got into one of our stupid little arguments, he was always the one to back me up. Yes, even when she rightfully accused me of being the one to dye her hair bright green to match her eyes. And yes, when she guessed correctly that I was the one to change her black robes and cloak to red and gold for my first Quidditch match.

Sirius was always there for me…except for that one time of course. He just had to side with Lily and Remus when she said I didn't know where the library was. But do you want to know the truth? Sirius didn't even know we had a library! So there.

But none of that matters right now.

All that does matter is that things are no longer bad for Lily and I. Because, really, how could they be?

I'm standing here, at the front of the church with Sirius, my best man who I secretly think only agreed to the job because he wants free food. And Lily is standing with Remus at the back of the church. Yes, things are good, because Lily and I are ready and waiting…waiting to spend the rest of our lives with each other.


	4. Chapter 4

****

a/n-i totally understand if you all hate me right now. I hate to admit this, but I sorta forgot this story even existed. So, I wrote this like two days ago, but then my mom was always on the computer. But now you have it: Ch. 4. I've already started the fifth and final chapter, so hopefully it will be out a lot sooner than this one took. Enjoy!

Disclaimer-I don't think I've mentioned this before, and I bet you never would have guessed this, but I really don't own Harry Potter or any of the related characters. Yes, I know. You're shocked.

Chapter Four

Throughout my first five years at Hogwarts, I was constantly having to come up with ways to amuse myself. No, that's not right…It's more like I was trying to find my place in the world. Although, _technically_, I already knew where my place was: right next to Lily. Unfortunately, she hadn't quite reached that level of knowledge by fifth year.

So, with Lily alternating between ignoring and refusing me constantly, while still finding time to hate me, I was forced to look for other things to occupy my time. Which is how Sirius and I came to be known as Hogwarts' biggest troublemakers.

Speaking strictly off the records, Sirius and I were the ones responsible for most of the pranks pulled in our time at Hogwarts. But you aren't going to tell anyone about that, _are you?_

Of course, I can't exactly say I'm proud of that title, or the things Sirius and I did to earn it.

Which leads us to after the DADA O.W.L. in fifth year…

We were sitting by the lake, underneath a tree, just hanging out, you know? We were teenagers, what do you expect? Anyway, Sirius said he was bored. It all went downhill from there. Because I, being who I am, just had to go and find someone to prank, so that Sirius wouldn't be _bored_ anymore. Do I really need to tell you who are lucky victim was on that beautiful summer afternoon?

I didn't think so.

Sirius and I really weren't going to take off Snivellus' pants, I swear…We were just having fun. Fun that nearly cost me any chance with Lily. You see, Snivellus and Lily were best friends, I have no idea _why_, but they were. So when the two of us starting…being mean…to Snivellus, she stepped in. Lily always was the model student and prefect.

Of course, instead of using my head and doing the right thing for once, I asked Lily out instead of putting Snivellus down. And then he called Lily _that word_, you know the one I'm talking about. (Like I said before, why were they friends in the first place?) Anyway, Lily got mad, I didn't get a date, Lily lost a friend, I was a huge idiot…must I continue with this list?

I'll tell you one good thing that was caused by that day, though. Sirius and I were talking about all of the pranks we'd pulled together over the years, and he was talking about how one day he was going to tell mine and Lily's future children all of these embarrassing stories about the two of us at school together. That was when I had the most brilliant idea of my life. I told Sirius that when Lily and I had our first kid, he could be its godfather. Brilliant, didn't I tell you so? Now, to break the news to Lily…

Moving on, that day at the lake is an excellent example of my idiocy that lasted six years.

It took me six years to figure out that if I really wanted to talk to Lily, it had to be 'civilly' in Remus' terms.

It was six years before I figured out that Lily was serious when she spent six minutes explaining why, exactly, she refused to go out with me.

After those six years in the dark, I spent another six months just trying to be Lily's friend, thinking I'd lost any chance I ever could have had with her.

Of course, after those six months were up, we spent another six months together, before I used less than six words to get Lily to be here today.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

I must admit that, although I liked Lily from the very start, I still find it hard to believe that she, who swore to hate me for all of eternity, changed her mind in the end.

_Flashback_

_Brriiinng!_

_James' head slipped off of the hand it had been resting on when the bell rang. Defense Against the Dark Arts had just ended, and if the professor had called on him during the class period, he hadn't noticed. James had been too absorbed in staring at Lily the whole time as she studiously took notes on everything the professor said._

_"You're doing it again." James vaguely registered Sirius saying. When James didn't respond, Sirius rolled his eyes and exited the classroom without his best friend._

_James slowly stood up as Lily stayed behind to chat with their professor, intent upon going to talk to her about what had been on his mind throughout all of the class period. All of a sudden, Lily seemed to sense someone behind her, because she stopped talking abruptly and turned around. When she saw James, her eyes widened and she hurriedly said goodbye to the professor._

_Sighing in defeat, James followed behind her as she fled the classroom, but at a much slower pace. He couldn't do anything right when it came to Lily, lately. He wandered aimlessly through the corridors, his mind in a haze as he thought about Lily. He was so distracted, in fact, that he would have run into the portrait hole if Sirius hadn't been coming out of it at that exact moment. It took a moment for James to register that Sirius was holding his broomstick in his hand._

_"What are you doing with that?" James asked his friend._

_"I'm going flying on it." Sirius said slowly, looking concernedly at his captain. "This isn't the broom I usually sweep floors with."_

_James nodded absentmindedly. Then, "Wait. Why are you going flying on it?"_

_"Because that's what we do at Quidditch practices." Sirius replied slowly. "Are you alright, James? You usually don't forget about Quidditch practices."_

_"We have Quidditch practice?!" James practically shouted, fully focused on what Sirius was saying by now. "Why didn't you say so sooner?" He demanded. "You go on ahead, tell everyone I'll be right there."_

_Without another word, James leaped through the portrait hole, which was still hanging open. He sprinted through the common room, and disappeared up the stairs to the boy's dormitories just as a certain red-haired girl was coming down from the girl's dormitories. He grabbed his broom out of his trunk and was just running back through the common room again as that same red-haired girl was going back up to her dormitory to get some books._

_In his haste to get to the practice he couldn't believe he had forgotten, James, one of the four creators of the Marauders Map, somehow ended up getting himself lost. As he rounded the corner, he wasn't paying attention, to busy trying to figure out where he was._

_CRASH!_

_"Oh, I'm so sorry, James," Lily said, bending over to pick up the massive pile of books she had dropped when she and James had collided._

_"It's OK." James replied, wincing as he rubbed his foot. It was a good thing he didn't need his foot to fly a broom, well, for the most part, anyway._

_"Are you alright?" Lily asked worriedly, having noticed his pained expression._

_"I'm fine." He said, coming to a sudden decision that now was a better time than ever to tell her what had been on his mind for a while now. As he came to that decision, his hand unconsciously reached up to his head, where he ran it through his hair nervously. "Listen, Lily, I wanted to talk to you about something…"_

_"Yes?" She prompted._

_"Never mind." He said suddenly, dropping his hand. "It's stupid anyway."_

_Lily suddenly grabbed his hand as it fell to his side, causing James' eyes to widen in surprise._

_"I'm sure it isn't stupid." Lily reassured him, standing up as she spoke, leaving her books scattered on the floor._

_"Well…erm…I was just thinking today in Defense," He began, curling his fingers around Lily's smaller hand, "You know how we agreed we'd be friends this year?"_

_Lily nodded and James gained the courage to continue_

_"I don't think it's a good idea." He said slowly._

_Lily's eyes widened. "Why not?"_

_"It's just…I can't…" He trailed off, not looking at her, trying to hide the sad expression in his eyes. He didn't want to be doing this. He loved Lily…But she didn't love him, and while he loved not fighting with her every second of the day, somehow that seemed easier in comparison with being just friends with her._

_"Well I don't care." Lily said, suddenly defiant, before she pulled his head down to her level, pressed her lips to his, and kissed him like her life depended on it._

_It took about a second for James to respond. He leaned in closer, and wrapped his arms around Lily tightly. After a few minutes, she pulled back and rested her head against his shoulder, which made a smile spread across his face._

_"You know, I think you're right," Lily began after a short silence, "Us being friends really isn't a good idea."_

_James just continued to grin._

_End Flashback_

Yes, that was the beginning of it all…well, all of the good stuff. There was already a beginning to the bad stuff at least seven years before that happened. But I stuck through to the end.

I stuck through my first meeting with Lily when she first decided to hate me. I stuck through my first fight with her, even though I _knew_ she was right and my arguing was totally pointless. I through the first time she turned me down (and every single time after). I stuck through just being her friend, because I knew nothing but good could come of it by that point. I stuck through our first kiss (but, really, why wouldn't I?), even though I _know_ Sirius, Remus, and Peter _must_ have had something to do with it. Hey, I even stuck through our first date. But, again, that was me sticking through to the end and my ultimate goal.

And you know what? That darn music just started, I just noticed Sirius suddenly start to pay attention, and I think I can see Remus way at the back. I have one more thing to stick through on my own…until Lily and I get to stick together through life as Mr. and Mrs. Potter.

**a/n-i am so incredibly sorry it took so long for me to get this chapter up. Believe it or not (and this is a really sad excuse, i promise), the reason it took me two+ months to write this chapter was because I couldn't figure out the last two paragraphs. So sorry about the long wait. So extremely sorry.**

**Anyway, on a more positive note, since this story is officially finished, if you want something else to read, got to my profile and click on the two links I have there for the two stories I co-authored with An-Jelly-Ca. Please! especially if you like humor.**

**So, I hope you liked the chapter, and the story as a whole. In advance, thank you for everyone reviewed and stuck through with this story to the end, especially since it's taken so long...**


End file.
